Few health care majors can say they completed their studies in the midst a historic global PANDEMIC quite like the graduates of 2020. They learned firsthand how authorities approach public health policy on a widespread scale by instituting social distancing guidelines and other measures to mitigate the rapid spread of COVID-19.
Piedmont Technical College (PTC) graduated 97 nursing majors in the spring and summer semesters ― a colossal achievement considering that in March, all nursing courses transitioned to online-only instruction abruptly at mid-semester.
“For those who may have had some clinical component remaining, the Board of Nursing allowed virtual simulations to fill gaps,” PTC Nursing Department Head and Instructor Miranda Gaillard explained. “Affected students have to demonstrate that they are competent in certain skills, so allowing virtual simulation for remaining clinicals has been helpful.”
PTC Health Care Dean Tara Gonce noted that the successful transition took a monumental effort of coordination and cooperation.
“In the Health Care Division, we were dealing with about 10 different accrediting bodies, all of which have different sets of guidelines, rules and regulations,” she explained. “I am amazed and so appreciative of all the faculty and program directors who contacted those entities and secured their cooperation with our change in format in a very short period of time.”
A Helping Hand
In addition to providing near-constant support for students adjusting to the sudden changes, PTC health care faculty assessed how they could help area hospitals before anticipated equipment shortages reported in other parts of the country.
“Four of our classroom ventilators went to Self Regional Healthcare,” Gonce said. “Prisma Health received our isolation equipment and PPE, including gowns, masks and gloves. We also took a count of our lab beds in case any local hospitals need to use them.”
During what arguably has been the most teachable of moments for PTC health care majors, those in the college’s Respiratory Care Program experienced their specialty in a sobering new light, as the respiratory care curriculum teaches about caring for patients with lung disorders.
“Four of our classroom ventilators went to Self Regional Healthcare. Prisma Health received our isolation equipment and PPE, including gowns, masks and gloves. We also took a count of our lab beds in case any local hospitals need to use them.”
Because COVID-19 patients typically present to the hospital with serious breathing issues, the respiratory therapist (RT) is often among the first people a COVID patient sees. The RT may administer supplementary oxygen and breathing treatments or, in the worst cases, intubate the patient and connect them to a ventilator to mechanically assist their breathing.
“You can’t separate the heart from the lungs, so patients in multiple clinical areas need an RT present,” said Ann Piggott, program director for Respiratory Care at PTC. “For this reason, an RT can work in just about any part of the hospital, from the Intensive Care Unit to an inpatient floor to the Emergency Department.”
New Health Care Certifications at PTC
PTC next spring will add a Vascular Sonography Certificate to its Cardiovascular Technology offerings for the spring 2021 semester. Vascular sonography utilizes ultrasound to perform diagnostic testing on patients’ arteries and veins. It is primarily used in the diagnosis of blood clots, blockages and aneurysms.
“Our students will have the opportunity to get this add-on certificate in January,” PTC Cardiovascular Technology Instructor Laura Boone said. “The goal is to get more people cross-trained in multiple ultrasound modalities so they can be more productive for hospitals and more marketable as graduates.”
Boone noted that there are generally three subspecialties beneath the umbrella of sonography: general sonography, which involves mostly abdominal and gynecological-related ultrasound imagery; echocardiography, which focuses on ultrasound imaging of the heart; and vascular sonography, which involves ultrasound imagery to examine blood vessels. Being cross-trained — or dual-certified — allows individuals to perform duties for multiple areas within the sonography field.
“It’s all interconnected,” Boone explained. “For each ultrasound subspecialty, you are learning different anatomy, physiology, and pathology so you can recognize ‘normal’ vs ‘abnormal.’ Each patient’s case is documented with the videos, images and measurements necessary to prove what type of pathology the patient has so they can be treated accordingly.”
In addition, PTC recently consolidated a three-semester Patient Care Technician Certificate course into a single semester rewarded with four certifications: CNA, PCT, Phlebotomy and EKG. Graduates of the new program hold Certified Nurse Assistant certification and qualify to take the National Certified Patient Care Technician exam, the National Phlebotomy Technician exam and the EKG National exam.
Learn more at www.ptc.edu/academics/schools-programs/health-care.